Flood Concerns On The Rise

Cloudy skies joined warm temperatures in the mid/upper 50s today, ahead of a moisture-fied (not a real word) system that’ll put flood concerns on the rise Friday into Saturday.

Surface map valid 6pm Thursday

A low pressure system is moving northeast toward the Ohio Valley, bringing a surge of moisture along with a passing warm front.

via funnyjunk.com

An associated cold front will push west to east over the area between midday Friday through the morning hours of Saturday.

Heavy Rain On The Horizon

Given the setup, we’re expecting widespread rain showers to take over by lunchtime Friday. The heaviest rain will fall between ~6pm Friday and noon Saturday. This is illustrated by the NAM 3km simulated radar model:

NAM 3km valid 12am Friday thru 6pm Saturday

Total rainfall amounts are expected to range between 2-4″+ areawide. Localized areas may see even more. The WPC (Weather Prediction Center) currently has a portion of the area in a Moderate Risk for flash flooding.

The following graphics provide a nice illustration of anticipated rain amounts, along with a look at the Flash Flood Risk Outlook from the WPC:

The entire region will go under a Flash Flood Watch at 12pm Friday, and it will last through 12pm Saturday. Please stay weather aware through this time…and remember, TURN AROUND DON’T DROWN and #AVOIDFAIRVIEW.

COLD Spell Follows

After the cold front moves east of the region, it’ll open up the door to MUCH colder air, which will pour in from the northwest.

Temperatures in the mid 50s during the predawn hours of Saturday will fall through the 40s as we progress thru the daylight hours.

via popkey.com

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day appear to be quiet, for the most part…a few of the models hint at a few snow showers flying Christmas Eve night, but nothing significant.

Sunday morning lows ~30˚ will eventually make their way to ~40˚; Christmas morning lows will start out ~20˚, making it to the mid/upper 30s during the afternoon.

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We’ll be updating the site as necessary, however, more frequent updates can always be found on our real-time weather feed —> @wxornotBG

Follow along for the latest weather information. Stay safe, folks.